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The American Privateer (Future-Tech)
The Democratic Republic of The American Privateer, known internally simply as The Republic and to international allies and enemies as TAP, is a Federal Constitutional Republic comprising seven star systems with thirty eight moons and planets, with all the associated space stations and orbital colonies. Lying entirely in the Large Magellanic Cloud, the star systems created are largely artificial, having been created through the use of the the Titan Project. TAP is fairly Isolationist, preferring to trade with other Universes they have had contact with through the use of their Dimensional Drives to other In-Universe powers with whom a war is more likely. In terms of species diversity, TAP is considered to be relatively diverse, preferring to limit immigration based on body types. Not due to any form of racism or xenophobia, but rather due to the practical considerations of battlefield and emergency surgery. Those being who are described as Non-Homomorphs largely keep to themselves, both in terms of naval service and in terms of domestic housing, largely due to different tastes in terms of ambient temperature, music, food, medicine, atmospheric mix, and other consideration. Diversity also tends to break down along lines of universal origin, due to entrenched knowledge of these other groups. History See Also: History of The American Privateer The Nation was founded when a fleet of ships US Naval Ships, granted a Letter of Marque by Congress, jumped via Tesseract, and wound up jumping through parallel universes before arriving in the universe they dub, The Nexus, or Universe-1. Due to the bleed over here, they where able to re-establish trading links with other universes, and through the assistance of a mutant named Forge from Universe-619, where able to integrate technology from numerous universes into a single cohesive whole. Lost and drifting, they eventually came across a natural gateway to a universe dubbed Universe-15, where they where able to get a contract to build 13 Titan Class World Builders, which they have since used to build new worlds for themselves. Having established themselves here, they went about making contacts with some of the other in-universe powers, obtaining needed technology to begin to build their new Military Republic. Using World Devastators, the first Items built where Dimensional Gates. They have since used these gates to contact numerous other universes, and acquire Trading Contracts and Technology Contracts. Following an internal civil war against the Ultra-Nationalistic NOVA Corporation, Jack Ray stepped down from his position as President for Life, and asked for elections to be held to form a New Constitutional Convention. Constitutional Convention Drawing upon the original US Constitution, as well as that of Canada, Britain, Australia, and those fo the various states, the Convention eventually drew up a new convention that was more expansive, and outlined specific rights of planets, colonies, and stations under the new government. The President of the Convention, Rebeca St. James, was quoted as saying afterwards, "This is a document that will usher in a new age for the Republic, and I hope that I can help steer this country in the right direction. Her journals, notes on revisions, thoughts on the future of the government, as well as those of the seventy-nine other delegates, have since become a Number One Best Seller in the Tortuga Times. First Presidential Elections The First Election, held on the Federally Mandated November 4th, surprised many in the Media. Endorsed by her Mentor, Admiral Jack Ray, Rebeca St. James and her Conservative Libertarian Party swept the elections, taking 50% in all three Houses of Congress, and seventy percent of the electoral votes. The Hive War One year into the second term of Rebeca St. James, a massive number of Hive Spheres where sighted heading toward the Manifest Zone. These 500 spheres where met with over a thousand warships. Despite this, and the initial chance of victory due to the use of Dark Matter and Anti-Matter weaponry, the Hive was able to destroy the APN Montana, a Viscount Class Star Defender, by detonating an Anti-Matter by remote resonance inside the tube. The shockwave ruptured Anti-Matter Containment throughout the ship. All hands died in the firestorm. The expanding cloud of Anti-Matter wound up destroying or crippling over a third of the ships present in the fleet. With the presence of thousands of more Spheres inbound, only the timely intervention of The Longinean Order was able to stop the invasion, and that only due to the assistance of the Inquisition, who had fitted out the vessels with massive numbers of Inferno Flamers and Heavy Flamers that allowed them to dive into enemy spheres and burn their way through. It wasn't until the Patterner Rahm activated the Hive Resonance Compliment that the Hive threat for the moment was finished, and the remaining ships limped home. Civilian Life Citizenry All those living in the Republic are at the very least National Residents. Residents are entitled to all rights of the Government, which the exception of voting. Following the collapse of the People's Republic of the United States of America, the primary question asked by the populace was simple. Why did the Republic Fall, and how did the nation become socialist in the first place. Like in so many other instances, the problem lay with who was voting. Benjamin Franklin had said so long ago, "When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic." That was the primary reason for the Fall. And thus, when the Nation was finally reborn, it was decided that the Voting Franchise had to be limited. To be a full Citizen with the right to vote, the person had to meet at least two of the following specifications. # Be at least 21 years of Age (Mandatory for all) # Serve a term of no less than 4 years in the armed forces # Pass a Senior High School Level Civics Final every ten years # Pass a History Test on the Fall of the United States of America, and the Constitutional Conventions of both the USA and TAP As the third and fourth requirements are part of the Naturalization Requirements, most immigrants are qualified to vote the moment they turn 21. Felons and Convicts are not allowed to Vote until the start of their second Incarnation, and even then must pass all of the requirements for citizenry to be able to do so. Professional Sports There is a wide range of Professional Sports available to the residents of The American Privateer. Hoverball The most popular Professional Sport, Hoverball is also one of the most expensive to set up and play. All of the members of the two teams use Hoverboards and specially designed suits to move a ball up and down the court, similar to the way it is done in soccer, only the players have to move the ball by carrying it in their arms. However, there are also three persons on each team equipped with Ion Lances that allow them to short out the boards of a person, and thus halt all movement by the opponent carrying the ball. The court that the game is played in is 200 meters long, 100 meters wide, and 50 meters tall. The goal is a 10 meter by 5 meter area that is usually guarded by the goalie and two defenders. Team Positions *Goalie: The Goalie is given the fastest Hoverboard on the team, and is tasked with guarding the Scoring Area. With the exception of the opponent carrying the ball, the Goalie is the only person allowed inside the Scoring Area. * Defenders: 2 Players, they are tasked with staying near the Scoring area and blocking the opponent from entering. * Chasers: 3 Players, they are the ones who actually grab the ball and attempt to score. * Forwards: 2 Players placed in the opposing forward area, they are tasked with assisting the Chasers and blocking the Defenders. * Lancers: 3 Players armed with Wrist mounted Ion Lances, they are able to stop opposing Hoverboards, which forces that player to give up the ball. Angleball The game that Hoverball is based off of, it is also the most commonly played game in the Republic. Played on a standard basketball court, there are some modifications made to the court to allow for the extra rules of the game. The primary one being the inclusion of two soccer goals, one under each Basketball Net. Scoring is complicated, and based off of position of the player and the way that the score is gained. Inside the two point area, but out side the Key, which is reserved for the Goal Keeper, a kick into the goal is worth a single point, while a Basket is worth two points. Outside the so called, Three Point Line, kicks are worth two points and baskets are worth three. The half-way line makes kicks worth three points and baskets worth four. Should the goal keeper of one team drop kick the ball into the opposing goal, then they gain their team ten points. If the person carrying the ball is tagged, then they are allowed three steps, before they must pass the ball to a teammate, or the other side gains possession of the ball. City Life Arts and Culture Sculpture Sculptures are not very common in The American Privateer due to the invention of the Holo Panel. Now, persons can design their own three-dimensional works of art, or download any models they wish to see displayed. Taking their place, are finely crafted firearms. The most popular are WWII M1 Garands with carved wooden stocks and fore grips, followed by Winchester Repeating Rifles that have been modified by Cherokee and Lakota craftmen in accordance with the modifications their ancestors used to make. Behind Guns come swords, with central focus being showered upon finely crafted Katanas and Wakizashis. Those who have a No-Dachi included in their set are considered to be wealthy due to the cost of crafting a No-Dachi to match a Katana and Wakizashi. Poetry Poetry has replaced painting, usually written in Kanji or Nashk scripts due to the belief of an inherent beauty in the language. Other common ones are Hiranga, Cherokee, Devanagri, Hebrew, and other such languages. These are projected onto walls using special paints that are able to change colors with the use of electrical stimulation, allowing for shifting poetry by time, month, season, and even at the whim of the home owner. Music Gregorian Chants Gregorian Chants have become popular of late, combined with orchestral pieces. One of the most popular is O Fortuna, the most popular version being the one preformed by the Orchestra-Rock band, Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Orchestral-Rock A recently resurgent style, this form uses full, 100 piece Orchestras combined with an early 3rd millennium rock band to preform classical rock pieces. The massive size and variety of instruments allows the musicians to gain a wider range of sound and effects, leading to more complicated auditory music. Percussion Rock A new type of music, these styles use various types of Drums, Pianos, Bells and Box Drums to create a unique type of music. Culture The people of The American Privateer have been nicknamed Libertarian Puritans. They value individual freedom and the rights of what they call the universe's largest minority, the Individual. At the same time, sexual taboos are still present, and things that "belong in the bedroom," remain there. The people value training of the mind and body through Hard Work, and loyalty to the Family and Clan are considered to be of utmost importance. Architecture Clothing Education Primary & Secondary Schools Primary Schools, unlike other schools in the system, are chosen based on location. Vouchers are available for parents who want to send their kids to Parochial Schools, but there are no Private Educational Facilities at the Primary Level. Students go from Kindergarten to Sixth Grade as Primary School Students. Secondary Schools are all non-governmental. Divided between Private Educational Facilities and Parochial Middle Schools, the Secondary School is dominated by Vouchers and Entrance Exams. Entrance Exams The Entrance Exams are a set of five tests given over a month, that show what schools the student qualifies for. Different Secondary Schools have different standards of acceptance based on how well the students do. High School Grades 10-12 are served here, and they are more loose in their codes overall. At this point, Private Military High Schools emerge, in which a student begins to train for a future military Career. Also introduced are Juvenile Detention and Educational Facilities for students who have committed crimes and are still able to be re-introduced into society. Hardened Criminals are sent straight to Juvenile Detention Facilities. Academies, Universities, Colleges, and Tertiary Academies are government run educational facilities for people who are looking into pursuing a military degree. The University System is a large one in The American Privateer. Though hard to get into, the schools are very prestigious. Colleges are easier, and focus on certain aspects of business. Students who go to Colleges are all Business personnel. Tertiary Schools are Trade Schools that Focus on getting people proficient in their trade. Students here are called Journeymen or Apprentices, instead of Upper and Lower Classmen. Specific Schools The American Privateer Military Academy The American Privateer Air Force Academy The American Privateer Naval Academy The American Privateer Coast Guard Academy The American Privateer Merchant Marine New Shiloh War College Academy of Military Research and Technology Uniformed Services Health University Na Nex Sa University of Agriculture and Technology University of Port San Lucas Commerce College of New Tortuga Government The Government of the Republic is a four branch system. A Tri-Cameral Legislature, an Executive Office, a Judicial branch headed by the Supreme Court, and the Administrative Branch. Legislative Branch The Legislative Branch has three houses, the Senate, House, and Diet. Senate The Senate is chosen by the Legislatures of each Planet, Moon, and Station. Each one gets five senators, who each serve for ten years before being term limited out. The Senate is in charge of the currency, shares control over the armed forces with the house, and has final say over all bills. Individual Senators are allowed to introduce legislation to the House of Representatives, who are required to take them into consideration. House of Representatives Made up of those chosen by the People, the House has all the power. Each person elected to the House can serve up to three four year terms. All bills have to start here in the House, regardless of their purpose. Diet Made up of skilled professionals, the Diet is chosen by members of the various Unions, the Universities, the heads of the Department of Energy National Science Facilities, and business professionals from major corporations. All trade bills have to start here, and it is not uncommon for at least one brawl to break out between two or more groups in the course of a single year. Executive Branch The Executive Branch of the Republic is lead by the President, who according to the Constitution, is the nation's highest military officer. President The President of the Democratic Republic of The American Privateer is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Chief of the Republic Security Bureau, has the power to Veto Bills, appoint cabinet positions, appoint justices, nominate persons for seats in the Diet, and make treaties with foreign states which must be approved by a Joint-Committee of the Diet and House. Line-of-Succession The Line of Succession states that should the President die, then so long as he lives, Fleet Admiral Jacob Ray shall become president for the rest of the elected term of the President, unless he should decline, in which case it shall go to the Vice-President, followed by the Speaker of the House, then the Head of the Diet, and then down the Cabinet Positions, starting with the Secretary of State. Vice President The Vice President is the President of the Senate, and is in charge of their day to day operations, and has the ability to break tie-votes should they exist, though he usually just votes present when he disagrees with the bill, letting it die. Chief Ambassador The Chief Ambassador is the only hereditary position in the Republic, being handed down from Admiral Jacob Ray to his descendants. This position has been created mainly so that the man who is known as the Father of his country can have says in what happens. The role is rarely used, due to the nature of the Admiral's other duties. Judicial Branch The Judicial Branch is headed by the Supreme Court, which has final say on all issues of constitutionality and has the role of final say in other matters of legal disputes. Supreme Court The Supreme Court is headed by the Chief Justice, who has up to fourteen Associates. The number of people on the court can change from time to time, but can reach no higher than fifteen, and no lower than seven. Every time a justice reached the age of seventy but refuses to retire, the President has the option to nominate a new justice, so long as this does not push the number of persons over fifteen. However, this action is rarely taken. The Supreme Court is the final say on all issues. Administrative Branch The Administrative Branch is the one in charge of actually running most things. The Cabinet positions are considered the heads of the departments. State Department The State Department is in charge of running the government and relaying information between the Legislative Branch, the Executive Branch, Adminstrative Branch, Legislative Branch, and the Planetary Governments. The current Secretary of State, Charles Richardson, is widely believed to be the next President of The Republic. Foreign Department The State Department is responsible for representing the Republic to the rest of the Universe. They own numerous lots inside of New Tortuga for embassies. They are only recently active after long periods of Isolation. War Department Based out of The Pillar, the War Department is tasked with organizing and maintaining the Armed Forces of The American Privateer. The War Department is headed by retired General Peter Moseby. Naval Department Headed by the ex-military dictator, Admiral Jack Ray, the Naval Department is in charge of the navy. Department of the Army of the Republic Headed by retired General Samuel Young, the Army Department is in charge of the Ground Forces. Aerospace Force Department Headed by retired Colonel Damien Archer, the Air Force Department is in charge of Aerial Forces. Department of the Guard The Coast Guard Department is headed by retired Coast Guard Admiral Jason Bigsby Justice Department Headed by the Attorney General, the Justice Department is the legal face of the country. Republic Security Bureau The Republic Security Bureau, an amalgamation of the CIA, FBI, and NSA, is responsible for all aspects of security for the Republic The RSB has secret ties to the Nova Corp. Food and Drug Enforcement Agency The Food and Drug Enforcement Agency is responsible for preventing bad food and dangerous drugs from reaching the people. Republic Department of Corrections Comprised of a system of Detention Centers and Correctional Facilities, the Department of Corrections learned a lesson from it's predecessors. Whereas in the United States, a criminal would be arrested, confined in an uncomfortable room with others like him, where he would learn more criminal activities and get fed regularly, in The American Privateer, once found guilty, the criminal is beaten or whipped, based on the severity of the crime, if it can be found that he can be "Salvaged." =Death Sentence = the death sentence in The American Privateer is execution by hanging from the neck until dead. During this, they play Danny Deever, a dirge, on the bagpipes. Military personnel sentenced to the death penalty are marched out in full dress, and have all insignia of service stripped from their uniform. To qualify for the Death Penalty, the convicted must *Be able to understand what he has done *Show a lack of repentance *Commit a crime in which a person is murdered Treasury Department The Republic Bank, the Treasury Department oversees the printing and distribution of said currency. Secretary of the Interior In charge of the National Parks, the Secretary of the Interior has very little power Secretary of Defense In charge of both Domestic and Exoplanetary defense, the nation's observatories all report to the Department of Defense. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Agency Responsible for protecting the nation's borders, and is responsible for manning the nation's Ellis Island Facilities Special Security Service The Special Security Service is divided into the Bodyguard and Currency Security branches. Transportation Security Enforcement = The TSE is in charge of protecting the Air and Sea from terrorists. SoulNet Security and Enforcement Agency Nicknamed the Net Force, the ISEA is in charge of protecting The American Privateer's internet and cyberspace assets Politics of The Republic Most of the population of the nation is center-right, and center-down. they want the most liberties they can with what they consider reasonable restrictions on Individual Liberty to ensure the Liberty of everyone. Communist Party One of the most unpopular parties following the fall of the Socialist States of America in the early decades of the 3rd millennium, they have allies in the far left of the Liberal Democrats, whom they use to legislate actions that will favor their party. Their symbol is a yellow star with a yellow hammer and sickle over top, and an upside down red pentagon in between. Conservative Party The Conservative Party, symbolized by a blue torch, is a traditionalist party that is interested in free-market economics, low taxes, and minor legislation on morality. They have a powerful base among the more evangelical christian faiths, and are considered to be the party of that group. Constitution Party The Constitution Party, using a white quill as their symbol, holds the writings of the Founding Fathers of the Unites States of America as law, with that highest law being the original constitution. They view the new one as a necessity, though they do believe that the original one as being above the New Constitution. Green Party Committed to using Green Technology. The party has little relevance due to the naturally eco friendly nature of most of the technology used by TAP. They use the Lebanese Tree as their symbol. Libertarian Party The Libertarian Party, symbolized by a blue Statue of Liberty in front of a Yellow Circle, is the party of many in the nation. They favor as little government control as possible, and support any position that will minimize government power. Those who founded the party where instrumental in many of the decisions that led to the current constitution. They where also responsible for getting the FairTax built body and soul into the constitution in opposition to the Income Tax in all of it's various forms. Liberal Democrat Party Resembling the Democrat Party of JFK, this is a nationalist party that favors more restrictions on the economy and less restrictions over personal freedoms. Some members of the party, annoyed at the lack of power in the Communist Party, have decided to use the Liberal Democrat Party to legislate civil controls that will benefit the Communists. The Liberal Democrats use a stylized black dove as their symbol. Modern Whig Party Represented by the Minuteman, the Modern Whig party want limited corporate powers, greater power int he hands of the small business Agro-men and nigh-unlimited gun rights. Nationalist Party The surrogates of NOVA Corps in the government, the Nationalist Party wants as little contact with outside states as possible, and the complete suppression of the Communist Party as possible. They use an orange star and circle as their symbol. National Socialist Worker's Party The surrogates of WASP and the United Socialist Worker's Army, they are fascists. Political Subdivisions Tortuga System The Tortuga System orbits around a Population I G3 Main Sequence star. The first planet in the system is Vulcan, a Class A planet that orbits the star in the the approximate same location as Mercury in the Sol system. It is rich in heavy metals, and is a prominent mining world. The second world, Keystone, is a Class F world that is the current subject of extensive terraform experiments. Keystone has a small Class D Planet called Loki. the third world in the system is the Class O Tortuga, which has three continents. Mechty in the southern polar circle, Starda on the equitorial belt, and Tentpole in the north. It orbits at .9 AU and is slightly warmer than Earth. Orbiting Tortuga is New Tortuga, a Class D planetoid that has been hollowed out and turned into a planetary city. It is home to the capital of the nation, as well as many of it's laboratories and centers of Higher Education. Beyond Tortuga is a massive Class U Gas Giant known as Threshold. It has a Class X mining world designated Whitefall, and a Class R known as Warhall. At the edge of the system is the Galileo Ice Cloud. Eden System The Eden system is based around an M2 Orange Giant. There are three habitable worlds in orbit around Eden Prime. Pflumn, a Class H arid world, with most life near the waters, and home to the Fremen. Na Nex Sa, a Class M world that is well known as a national farming world. The last one is Pawnee, a Class O world that seems to be heading toward a P designation that is well known for it's abundance of fish. Beyond them is the Class J Hestia, and beyond that the Class I gas giant Hades. Quivira System Made up of a T4 red dwarf, orbited by the Class X Quivira, Class C Dorado, and Class X Red River. The system is extremely metal rich and home to most of the mining conducted by The American Privateer. Marquesas System The Marquesas System orbits Basis a G2 main sequence star very similar to Sol. The first planet in the system is a Class B planet named Hermes. The second planet is the Class N Eros. The third rock from Basis is Marquesas, a Class M world that is home to the Xavier Institute, Hidden Dragon Village, Samurai Holdings, and Bene Gesserit holdings. The fourth world is the Class K Ares, which is home to many military testing and training grounds. The fifth planet is Class U Botany Bay, which is home to the Republic Penitentiary Station. It is orbited by the Class X world Quantico, which is the home of the RSB Detention Centers. Titan System Orbiting a G2 Main Sequence Star, the Titan System is an almost purely artificial system, with most world made via the Titan Ships, thus earning the name. The First and second world, both of them orbiting at the same speed, distance, only opposite of each other, are named Cronus and Gaia, and are home to planet wide game preserves. they are popular destination spots for camping and hunting. San Edo System The San Edo system is one of the richest systems in the Republic. It is based around San Edo, an F3 Main Sequence Star. The first world in the system is the Class F Starhall, which is a popular site for stargazing. The second world, New Shiloh, is a Class M/O world that is home to the nation's stock markets, commodities exchange, and banking systems. The third world is a Class K world named York, and is home to the TAP Astrophysics Laboratory. New Jerusalem System Orbiting an O4 Supergiant, there is only one world in the New Jerusalem, the Class M planet New Jerusalem that is home to the Holy Order of Saint Longinus and the Catholic Church of the Republic. Armed Forces Navy of the Republic The Big Stick of the Republic, the Navy is also the force that is first called upon should conflict breakout due to their natural mobility. However, under most instances, they act as a defensive force, as the government of the Republic is reluctant to get involved in foreign conflicts. There are five Fleets of vessels, each one bearing it's own insignia prominently upon the sides of the vessels. 1st Fleet The Big Stick, the emblem of the 1st Fleet is an American Eagle perched over a pair of crossed lightning bolts. The flagship of the Fleet is the APN Theodore Roosevelt. 2nd Fleet The Shield of Freedom, The emblem of the fleet is a crimson shield. The Flagship of the Fleet is the APN George Washington. 4th Fleet The Great White Fleet, whose emblem is a crossed pair of sais over a black diamond. Their Flagship is the APN Dwight D. Eisenhower. 5th Fleet The Starsharks, with their stylized shark emblem, are a popular showing over the Capital. The Flagship of the fleet is the APN Harry S. Truman. 7th Fleet The Kamislayers, the emblem of the 7th Fleet is a blood red Tori. The Flagship of the fleet is the APN Ulysses S. Grant. Republic Aerospace Force Republic Army Republic Guard Zombie Investigation and Elimination Teams Xavier Institute of Defense and Education Samurai Rikugun Hidden Dragon Village Fremen War Parties Economy Agriculture Primarily taken care of via Aquaponics, the massive greenhouse towers that dot the cityscape of cities such as Port San Lucas or Marquesas. Each rising sixty feet or more, they grow tilapia in pools, with floating trays of hydroponic plants overhead. The fish produce waste that provides food for the plants, and the plants clean the dirty water. They can combine to produce massive yields of both Flora and Fauna. Plants such as potatoes and citrus trees that require rooting, are placed in massive drums, their roots taking hold in Coconut Fibers. These drums rotate, provide liquid nutrients and constant light to increase yields to previously hypothetical levels. Manufacturing For most people, manufacturing happens at home, with the cost coming from downloading patterns and purchasing raw-materials for their Home Manufacturing Printer. These can produce anything up to a Laptop or PC monitor in size. For larger items, it is primarily conducted by the many Automated Industries. Transportation Manufacturing Dominated by General Transport, AeroGround, and Ford, this sector of the economy is almost entirely automated, with most of the humans who work in the industry doing so in marketing and Research and Development. For Ground Vehicles of the Armed Forces of both TAP and TLO, Arms Manufacturing The biggest Arms Manufacturing company in Winchester Arms, who produces firearms for both civilians and the armed forces and the M-2 Shaker for the Armed Forces. Right behind them is Springfield Armory, which focuses entirely on military arms. They too produce the M-2 Shaker, though they do so with a longer casing that has come to be known as the Springfield Snake. Their most important arms manufacturing though, is the production of Heavy Weapons such as the IG Autocannon and IG Lascannon. Mining Industry Dominated by the Diamond Mining Companies, the Mining Industry is largely automated, leading to massive profits for very little cost. The most common tool is the Molecular Furnace. Able to strip down entire worlds if given enough time, the Molecular Furnace provides the materials asked for broken down at the molecular level in containers for later shipping and manufacturing. Diamond Mines operate differently. Run similar to old coal mines, the only real difference is that they are more likely to operate on worlds that have high volcanic activity that has, in the past, been known to produce Diamond Vents. They are primarily used in the Electronics Industry, which is almost entirely owned by Eagle Diamonds, Kay Jewelers, and SaberStar Mining. Energy Terrestrial Power Plants Nuclear Fusion The most common form of power in The American Privateer on the ground is Nuclear Fusion. Neighborhoods have their own individual fusion plants buried a half mile in the ground, and heavily shielded to prevent any kind of major accidents. Orbital Solar Power = Behind Nuclear Fusion is Solar Power, using orbiting satellites to beam the energy down to Base Stations on the Planet's Surface. This is able to triple the efficiency of normal solar panels and provides massive amounts of power, that can cause problems for those living nearby should the Orbital Lenses be knocked out of position. Anti-Matter Power Anti-Matter is another common one, though the generators are all located outside of Planetary atmospheres, and far from planets if possible. This is the result of an accident that took place over Threshold, the smoke of which still orbits the planet. Geothermal Power All of the government facilities in the Republic use Geothermal Power, as it is secure, and can be tasked with providing power to the rest of the surrounding area should the normal, First Tier stations run down for some reason. Space Facility Power Plants Solar Power Similar to the ones placed in orbit over worlds, Solar Power is not uncommon, as the vast majority of the Space Facilities are stationary, and do not need anything bigger than Solar Power. Nuclear Fusion Small generators are located in the Engineering sections of all stations and star ships to allow them to maintain emergency power should their primary power generation sources fail. Subspace Capacitors A misnomer from it's name, Subspace Capacitors hold large pockets of Quantum Foam inside their magnetic bottle, and power the ships they are attached to. All such systems must be shut down before a Tesseract Jump is activated, or the vessel conducting the jump will be sucked completely into another universe, and will not be able to return to the previous one without knowledge of the co-ordinates on the Higher Dimensional p-Branes. Anti-Matter Reactors The most common secondary power source on interstellar vessels, these power the jump drives, and shields of the vessel during Jumps. They can also be brought online during combat, though if online, destruction of the ship will result in a spreading cloud of anti-matter that can wreak havoc for all int he path. Demographics The Democratic Republic of The American Privateer is a diverse nation, with species and peoples from across the multiverse inhabiting the planets, and faiths from across the multiverse are present in the Republic. Please see the Demographics of The American Privateer page for more on this. Spacial Oddities of the TAP'ian Cluster Manifest Zone In the part of the Large Magellanic Cloud inhabited by The American Privateer is an anomaly known as the Manifest Zone. In these areas, other universes tend to bleed over into the universe deemed Universe-1419. This can cause problems for those inhabiting the cluster. The primary problem is that ansible and resonant harmonic system are not allowed within 130 light years of the cluster, due to the tendency of those systems to draw a collective organism called The Hive through the Manifest Zone with Universe-135. The Hive is a collective organism that eats all organic matter (with the exception of teeth) in it's path. They travel in spheres that are able to project distortion fields and travel at FTL speeds. While traveling at FTL speeds, all gorgons are asleep, with the top layer frozen dead and solid. There are three types of Hive beings. Gorgons are the standard form; they are comprised of tentacles ending in grasping beaks and eyes all over the body and are able to insinuate through shields. Soldiers, also known as Can Openers, are deemed Anti-Bodies by Universe-135's highest authority on the organism, Don Jose Maria Cordillera. Soldiers resemble Gorgons, but they will tend to form a roughly octo-bear type form with armor plates on their bodies. Gluies are the worst, resembling white, gooy maggots, the only way to kill them is with fire, lots of fire. Hive have a hard-on for pretzels for some reason, and will give up a perfect kill to get to a bag of Pretzels or similarly shaped food. When a gorgon dies, they become not but caustic goo the color of french onion soup. During a Hive Encounter, electronic systems tend to become uffed, gorgons will beam themselves into the ship, cyborgs tend to target other members of their crew, and gunnery systems will shut down. Soldiers fighting them tend to have trouble drawing breath, or at least the perception thereof, and feel a dread in their bones when they get close. Wake Angels Energy beings, Wake Angels are the natives of Universe-15. They feed off of electro-magnetic energy, similar to the energy that is created as a by product on TAP'ian vessels. As such, large pods of them can usually be found following the vessels, and playing in their EM wakes. Many of the more superstitious spacemen believe that there are two type of Wake Angels. The purple and blue kind, the only recorded and verified form of the Wake Angel, is believed to bring good luck to a ship during passage. The Red and Green kind on the other hand are believed to cause bad luck. However, there have been no reported sightings of the red and green kind, dubbed Wake Demons, on any form of scientific probes, to the counter claims that only a few have lived to see the Wake Demons, and that no sensors have survived the doomed vessels to give official reports of them. Conspiracy theorists claim that Wake Demons are a form of the Hive, and act as scouts for the Hive. Memorials and Natural Monuments Liberty Tree National Monument Liberty Tree National Cemetery is the holies ground on the continent. The Cemetery is bordered by a line of Southern Live Oaks. At the center stand 56 California Redwoods, one each for the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. The gates into the cemetery bear the quote "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants" Inside, the graves are marked by war, unit, and name. Though the dead are usually buried elsewhere, all soldier have a marker in the cemetery. Those who earn the Congressional Medal of Honor are buried under the Redwoods, giving way to the saying, "Don't be a hero, the shade aint worth it!" It is located near the capitol of Na Nex Sa, and is considered the nation's holiest patch of ground. Palace of Memorium Fashioned after the Palace of Soviets, the Palace of Memorium is a supertall facility with the names of all those who have died in the service of the United States of America and later the Coalition of Independent States. Recently, a new project within has been started to carve the names of the Naval Personnel who died in the Hive War upon the walls. , Future Category:The Great American Republic